Bayern Munich president Uli Hoeness has revealed that Cristiano Ronaldo’s transfer value and age put the German Bundesliga title holders off making a summer move to sign him.
Ronaldo signed for Italian Serie A giants Juventus for a staggering transfer fee of €112m (£99.2m) as he left Real Madrid after nine trophy-laden years in the Spanish capital.
However, Bayern president Hoeness has insisted that if the Bavarian club had been presented with an opportunity to sign the Portuguese international, then Ronaldo’s age would have prevented a transfer from happening, saying that at 33, a transfer for the former Manchester United man wouldn’t have been viable.
“We would have paid that amount for him with our eyes closed if he was 24 years old but he’s 33,” Hoeness told German publication Bild, via Marca.
Ronaldo’s age has just been a number for him at Juventus, however, as since his July move to Italy, he has scored 11 goals and got six assists in his 18 appearances for the Bianconeri – breaking divisional and club records in the process.
El MVP of the Month Powered by @EA_FIFA_Italia es…
¡@Cristiano ! ? ⚫️⚪️ https://t.co/gphXjmHT28 pic.twitter.com/gCKw8ewMV8— JuventusFC (@juventusfces) December 6, 2018
Ronaldo’s form has helped the Turin outfit to the summit of the Serie A standings, with Juventus unbeaten from their 14 league games, winning 13 of them, and holding an eight-point lead on their nearest challengers Napoli.
They host Inter Milan on Friday aiming to extend their advantage at the top ahead of the weekend fixtures.
By contrast, the decision not to attempt to sign Ronaldo could prove costly for Bayern chief Hoeness, with the reigning Bundesliga champions having struggled to match their form of last season under recently-appointed manager Niko Kovak.Currently fourth in the German top-flight, Bayern find themselves nine points adrift of league leaders Borussia Dortmund, having endured a difficult opening, by their standards, to their title defence.
Should results go their way, Bayern could move second and cut the gap on Dortmund with a win over FC Nurnburg, who they welcome to the Allianz Arena on Saturday.